# Vẫn / còn / vẫn còn: still in Vietnamese (A1)

> Vẫn and còn both mean "still", and both go right before the verb or adjective: Trời vẫn mưa. It's still raining. Em còn đói. I'm still hungry.

Source: https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/van-con-still/ · Updated 2026-11-09

**still**

Pattern: `[person] + vẫn / còn / vẫn còn + [verb or adjective]`

Level: A1 (our estimate) · Register: everyday

Typed without accents: van, con, van con

Variants:

- hãy còn (less common, older-sounding)

*Vẫn* and *còn* both mean "still", and both go right before the verb or adjective: *Trời vẫn mưa.* It's still raining. *Em còn đói.* I'm still hungry. Together, *vẫn còn* is very common and a little stronger: *Trời vẫn còn mưa.*

There's a small difference in feel. *Vẫn* says nothing has changed, often when you might have expected it to: *Tôi vẫn nhớ tên chị.* I still remember your name. *Còn* says something hasn't run out or ended yet: *Còn sớm.* It's still early. *Em còn trẻ.* You're still young.

For "still not", use *vẫn* with *chưa* or *không*: *Em vẫn chưa hiểu.* I still don't understand. The opposite of "still", "not any more", is *không … nữa*: *Tôi không ở đó nữa.* I don't live there any more. *Không còn* says the same, often with *nữa* too: *Tôi không còn ở đó (nữa).*

To ask, use *còn … không*: *Em còn làm ở đó không?* Do you still work there?

*Còn* has other jobs too. At the start of a sentence it means "and what about": *Còn chị?* And you? Before an amount it means "left": *Còn hai cái.* There are two left.

## Examples

- Trời vẫn còn mưa. — It's still raining.
- Em còn làm ở đó không? — Do you still work there?
- Dạ, em vẫn làm ở đó. — Yes, I still work there.
- Em vẫn chưa hiểu. — I still don't understand.
- Còn sớm, anh ngồi chơi đi. — It's still early, stay a bit longer.

## Words in this pattern

- [còn](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/con-and/#s_con_still): still
- [vẫn](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/words/van-still/#s_van_still): still

## Compare

- [Not any more: không … nữa](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/khong-nua-anymore/): no longer
- [Have left, still to go: còn + noun, còn … nữa](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/con-left/): have left
- [And you? Còn …?](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/con-and-you/): and you? / what about …?

Previous in Time and when things happen: [Small time unit first: chiều mai, chủ nhật tuần sau](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/time-units-order/)
Next in Time and when things happen: [Telling the time: giờ, rưỡi, kém](https://vietnamesebuddy.com/grammar/telling-time/)

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